Day 7: I said goodbye to Scotty at the border, and headed north into Namibia. It was now just me, the Xr600, and Namibiaās vast open roads!
I also managed to break both headlights when I stupidly dropped the bike fixing another puncture. I taped them up and hoped I didnāt need to ride in the dark!
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Namibia, Nov 2021
More from the trip in my story highlights
Day 5: The others returned back to Cape Town and Scotty continued on with me. We headed up to Pella and then took some of the Namakwa eco trail towards the border.
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South Africa, Nov 2021
More from the trip in my story highlights
Day 3: We crossed back over the river again the next day further upstream. Though finding a crossing was a little harder so we spent some time bundu bashing through some thorny bushes to find a good spot to cross. Of course, this resulted in a good old puncture!
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South Africa, Nov 2021
More from the trip in my story highlights
Day 2: Crossing the Doring river. Bernard led the way, but luckily for the rest of us there was a safer way.
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South Africa, Nov 2021
More from the trip in my story highlights
Day 1: After 7 great years in Cape Town, it was time to say goodbye.
I arrived here on a motorbike, so I thought the only way to leave was the same way.
I was joined by my closest friends as we took to our favourite trails one last time.
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South Africa, Nov 2021
More from the trip in my story highlights
While lockdown had us housebound, we delved into the maps to plot an escape for the moment restrictions eased and regional borders opened.
We headed north out of Cape Town, following the coastline until we hit the Orange River that marks the border with Namibia. From here we made our way east through the mountains of the Richtersveld and along the Namakwa Eco Trail before turning south back home.
For the full journey head to archieleeming.com (link in bio)
These colourful trucks would rumble along with the jingling sound of the metal chains hanging from their bumpers heralding their arrival. We would ride on their tails, suffocating in a black cloud of smoke waiting for our gap to overtake on these twisty narrow roads. We met these two jolly guys on the way to Khaplu who were eager to show us around their truck. It was awesome to see the inside decorated as much as the outside.
#pakistan
Along the Karakoram Highway, adjacent valleys run further into the mountains. The Shimshal valley is a dramatic one that runs for 60km along draw-dropping cliff edges. At every turn the drop offs seemed to get bigger, making for some hairy riding! @zoewakefield did not enjoy my instructions to ride along the edge side for better photos!
#shimshalvalley #pakistan
We stopped in Ghulkin on our way back south and spent two nights with Rehman and his family. Rehman showed us around the valley, taking us to the Passu glacier and the summer village of Zarabad via a few fairly treacherous suspension bridges. Back at his house, Rehman had been sent a laptop by a friend in China, though sadly between the two of us we couldnāt work out how to find the English language option!
Get in touch with @rehman.gkn if you are passing through Ghulkin, a great host and guide!
#ghulkin #pakistan
We found a spot to camp for the night here in the the village of Misgar. Beyond here is the Mintaka pass and the original route to China before the Karakoram highway was built. China thought Mintaka would be more vulnerable to attack so decided on a route via the steeper Khunjerab Pass instead.
#pakistan #misgar
